Kilombero River: Trip II

It has been over five years since we last visited Kilombero River (Trip I) and we were excited to get back on the river. Unfortunately the area was struct with a deluge of rain that is not typical for the year and thus the river was pretty quiet in regards to wildlife. We were lucky to have no rain the day we went to the river though it threatened throughout our trip.

We headed down to the bridge, which was a ferry crossing when we last visited. We parked our car at a police check point nearby and took a bijaji to the river. We met a group of fisherman and negotiated hard for a good price on a big boat to take us out for a few hours. There were four of us and we found a big boat with two boatman. We even managed to get the seats (in actuality they were just pieces of wood nailed to together) so we didn't have to sit on the floor of the leaky boat. From our previous trip we remembered it could be both sunny and rainy and brought along umbrellas for cover.

We headed west on the river and enjoyed the calmness. We saw a crocodile carcass that the guys claimed died of natural causes. We saw several fisherman that were fishing from boats as well as from the shores. The river was very muddy and high but was relatively calm. We puttered around in the boat until mid-day and then headed back to the boat landing, dry and satisfied!

At some point we stopped and our lead boatman bought a bunch of fish. He plopped this poor bottom feeder right in front of me and it occasionally flailed around. You get what you pay for!

Mikumi National Park: Trip II

Vultures stopping for a drink.

This weekend we took our second trip to Mikumi National Park (Trip I). Mikumi NP offers something different than Ruaha National Park and being only 3 1/2 hours away it's a doable trip on a weekend. On our last trip to the park we explored the northern part of the park which mainly consisted of flooded grassland and some man-made pools of water. On this trip we decided we'd drive the northern section in the morning and in the afternoon head south to the Miombo woodland hills.

We left Iringa mid-afternoon on Friday and arrived to our guesthouse Friday in time for dinner. It was only a half hour from the gate so we were ready to go at 6am on Friday and spent the morning on the main tourist game drive circuit in the north. We didn't see any carnivores but managed to see wildebeest, elephant, zebra, giraffe, eland, warthog, Bohor Reedbuck, and stunning views of a male Bushbuck and an up close encounter with a big crocodile. My favorite part of the morning was getting stuck between a herd of over 100 buffalo. All of them skittishly faced us and smelled for us. It was a bit unnerving to have them all focused on us!

Ana watching a croc slide by.

We lucked out and found the cottages/headquarters with some dining options. We were a little early at noon but had a coffee and some overpriced (15,000tsh) chips and chicken, then headed back out. All the bandas and campsites that we visited were quite well done with a range of amenities from cottages to camping sites.

The real highlight of the trip was venturing into the less visited Vuma Hills part of the park. We explored the southern side and found a waterhole with over 70 vultures drinking. We followed the road along east and saw a half-constructed and dilapidated lodge overlooking a waterhole with loads of waterbirds. We then headed south and up into the hills passing through some gorgeous Miombo woodland. The landscape shifted from a mosaic to a well developed Miombo woodland surrounded by rolling hills. The area was quiet and felt very wild. We ended up on the far western side at a lodge and were unsure if we were in our outside the park. We took a road that had likely been used no more then once this season and it proved adventurous with detours at treefalls, and unexpected termite mound holes.

When we arrived to the lodge we weren't sure how to get out. We shouted for assistance but no one came and we kinda checked out the lodge until 15 minutes later someone came to point us in the right direction. We took a road straight down and managed to get out of the park by 630pm. After a long day it was nice to get out and the vastly different landscapes of the park made it feel like we had done two days in one!

Lone Zebra in the grass.

At man-made waterhole with some other wildlife.

In the Miombo woodland.

Iringa: Basketball

View of the courts to the east with the event hall and other buildings in the background

When I was younger I was very active in team sports and I've found it's a great way to connect with people abroad. Much like language, I am forced to pick up whatever the locals play. I remember learning to play cricket in Jamaica and soccer in Nigeria. But a sport that I am familiar with is basketball, though it's difficult to find a court and enough players given the lack of popularity for basketball. When I was living in Uganda I was lucky enough to find access to a basketball court and enough players for full court. And luck strikes again as I've found a regular spot in Iringa.

There is a basketball court in a large complex of a Lutheran church. The area is labeled a student center but there is a large event hall (I attended a meeting there with 1,000 people), several buildings, and a large field where people also play football. There have been events there such as a DSTV fun day and a medical outreach activity. Every day there are around 50 kids that meet at a building and practice church song and dance. It's really a fantastic recreation center and the court is in decent shape. It also has a beautiful view of the hills on the east and west of Iringa with a nice sunset every evening. 

Kichangani basketball is a loose group of around six regulars and 15 people that rotate. There are usually enough players for full court and the skill level is typically enough for the game to be fun. The thing I love the most is although the guys play hard they are not fouling hard or driving the lane recklessly, the type of stuff that leads to injuries. Everyone plays safe and respectfully and more importantly, plays to have fun. We meet around 5:30pm and play till it's dark, around 7pm. The majority of the guys are probably between 20-25 with one other guy around my age.

At the end of every game we gather in a circle and take turns giving feedback of the days game. Then we hold hands in a circle, say a little prayer, and then do an old school call and response where one person says "Kichangani" and the others shout "basketball!". It's all rather wholesome!

View to the west

Ruaha National Park: Dry season trip

View east from a hill.

One of my favorite things about visiting Ruaha in the dry season is the unique palette of colors the landscape displays. Viewed in isolation the orange sandy soil and grey leafless trees seem unimpressive but as a whole a myriad of oranges, browns, yellows and greys provide an unexpectedly beautiful landscape.  Depending on the time of the day the sun might illuminate the brown grasses or bounce off the orange soils with the light affecting the landscape in subtle ways. I'm always taken aback at how much I enjoy the aesthetic in the brutal heat even with no wildlife present. There is something alluring about all the dormant plants just enduring the hardships of no rain, harsh sun, and wind.

We were lucky enough to be able to explore the park on foot this trip but unfortunately had to work through the hot day. Wildlife was sparse around Msembe and Ruaha River Lodge but we did manage to see a pair of Wild Dogs early one morning, which makes ANY trip a success!

Checking out the river.

Giraffe in the riverbed

Classic dry Ruaha landscape.

Sunrise on the hill.

Mikumi National Park: Trip I

We finally got the opportunity to visit Mikumi National Park, a unique park that's often less visited by foreigners due to its location and lower density of wildlife compared to the northern parks. It is, however, widely visited by local Tanzanians as a result of being in relative close proximity to Dar es Salaam and thus the animals are reasonably habituated allowing for easy viewing. It is also unique in that a major highway runs through the park, the TANZAM highway, which means it provides a free opportunity to view wildlife for locals and foreigners alike that drive through the area. It's somewhat overshadowed by other parks in Tanzania since it's not on the northern tourist circuit and lacks the abundance or variety in wildlife but it's still relatively easy to see lions, elephants, buffalo and a variety of other species.

The park is mostly dry miombo woodland and flood-pain grassland so dry season allows for much more accessibility in the northern half of the park. We weren't so much focused on seeing any particular animal but we were more interested in seeing the different areas of the park. As a result we drove to the northeast and looped around to the northwest and back south towards the more touristy areas. It was very different than Ruaha National Parks with multiple coasters and buses full of people but once we got off the main track we did not see any other cars. Although the wildlife density was low, the variety of ungulates was impressive. We saw hippo, warthog, zebra, eland, giraffe, buffalo, bushbuck, suni, natal duiker, bush duiker, Bohor Reedbuck, impala,  and wildebeest.

We realized that we have been unfairly neglecting Mikumi NP and that with its proximity to Iringa (3.5 hours) it's an easy weekend for laid back wildlife viewing. It has several man-made waterholes which make wildlife viewing in the dry season more predictable and the grasslands make viewing much easier. We'll definitely take more trips in the future!

Lake Ngwazi

Along the main highway between Iringa and Mbeya is a massive pine plantation which also happens to have two lakes. There is a large lake, Lake Ngwazi, and a smaller reservoir with a neighboring wetland. It's an easy drive from Iringa with some nice birdwatching opportunities so this week we decided to pop down there and check it out.

I'm not sure the area is geared towards the public so we just followed roads on satellite imagery winding through the plantation. We eventually found our way to Lake Ngwazi but were seemingly on the wrong side of the lake. There were some buildings and tea fields on the other side but we didn't drive all the way around. Instead we drove along the northern side of the lake stopping to watch birds occasionally but there wasn't much going on.

We continued along to the smaller lake and found a place to park and went on a nice walk. There was a small dam and a wetlands where we saw a Whyte's Water Snake and a variety of other birds. The chilly highlands air was perfect with the sunshine. We saw a pastoralist out in the distance with some cows coming to drink but otherwise the area was very quiet.

We really enjoyed the area and it would be great to do some camping there. For a day visit it's a little far from Iringa but it does offer a nice place to get out and walk so even a packed lunch day could be excellent. 

Ruaha National Park: May 2019

Famous Baobab tree

The park is beautiful this time of year. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves!